20th Anniversary Stories

Renewables have become an important part of China’s energy supply. Since the promulgation and implementation of the monumental Renewable Energy Law, this industry has entered a period of rapid development. In 2018, new increase and the total of installed capacity of hydro, wind, and photovoltaic power in the country both ranked number one in the world.

Once upon a time in China, smog was a foreign concept, something people talked about when London or Los Angeles was mentioned. But since early this century, it has become the focus of the whole country. New words, such as “airpocalypse,” were invented to describe situations where existing vocabularies failed with their insufficiency.

“During the Global Climate Action Summit held in San Francisco in September 2018, Minister Xie Zhenhua, China’s Special Representative for Climate Change Affairs, enthusiastically talked about how Energy Foundation China raised $2 million for the 2012 Hundred Energy Efficiency Standards Promotion Project (HEESPP), providing timely and strong support for the smooth progression of the project,” Dr. He Ping, Industry Program Director of EF China proudly recalled, when talking about the foundation’s efforts on improving industrial energy efficiency in the country.

“I’m in total agreement with these words from Mr. Tizon. Good communications can give people an excellent understanding of your story and win over their heart and mind. It can also give birth to an enthusiasm for change. Climate change is becoming the underlying theme for all the important issues in the world. Therefore it is an exciting challenge to tell a good story of climate change and low-carbon transformation, in order to cultivate ambition and encourage action for saving humanity in the face of climate calamity,” said Jing Hui, Director of Strategic Communications at Energy Foundation China (EF China).

In September 2018, Mr. Gong Huiming, representing Energy Foundation China, went up the podium in San Francisco for the 2018 Climate and Clean Air Awards and received the Transformation Policy Award from the United Nations Environment Programme.

“During the few years around the turn of this millennium, the streets of Beijing were filled with yellow taxi vans—locals jokingly likened them to ‘noisy locusts.’ Soon, these tiny boxes on wheels were replaced by red Xiali, mini hatchbacks with Japanese origin, as a staple of taxi fleet in China. Its number kept rising until people would say ‘all under the heaven is red.’ Since then, China’s auto sales had grown at an average rate of more than 20 percent per year, eventually making it the world’s largest auto market,” Gong Huiming, director of the Transportation Program at Energy Foundation China, recalled.

Over the past decades, the rapid growth of China’s economy and the accompanying urbanization has turned many areas of the country into vast construction sites. According to statistics on 2018, energy consumption for buildings in China accounts for nearly 50 percent of the total, after taking account of all the related items, such as production and transportation of building materials. This number will continue to rise as the urbanization process continues.

Over the past 40 years, the people in China have watched their city roads getting wider and wider, with more and more motor vehicles running on them. Unfortunately, they also bore witness to the ballooning problems of traffic congestion and air pollution. Wang Zhigao, director of the Low Carbon Cities Program of Energy Foundation China, felt increasingly worried. “The car-oriented model of urban development and chaotic expansion have led to a variety of urban diseases. What people need is a livable place that is low carbon, prosperous, vibrant, and humane,” he said.

The year of 2019 is a rather unusual year. It’s the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. It coincides with the 40th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the United States. This is also the year that many Chinese from all walks of life have just reviewed the 40 years of reform and opening up of the country. The people are now eyeing a new phase of development in the coming decade and beyond. The country is poised to usher in formal implementation of the Paris Agreement as well, which is known as “the best chance we have to save the one planet we have.” Standing at this important juncture, Energy Foundation China happens to be celebrating its 20th birthday as an environmental philanthropy in the country. While we are filled with emotions reminiscing about our past, our eyes are firmly set upon the future.